[music] Hello Bloomington. I'm Mayor Tim Busy and this is the council minute for the week of December 15th. On Monday night, the city council adopted the 2026 budget and tax levy for the city of Bloomington. Deputy Finance Officer Kari Carlson gave her final presentation on the subject for the year, including a recap of the city's commitment to investing in public safety. As I'm sure you know, more than half of the budget increase will go towards public safety, largely driven by the fire department's transition to a combination staffing model and continued investments in our police department. Public safety has been the top priority for Bloomington residents for many years, and this budget once again reflects those priorities. The 2026 levy has been reduced significantly since the conceptual tax levy increase of 17.92% was introduced to council earlier this year. By September, the preliminary tax levy was down to 9.44% and by this week's council meeting, staff had managed to bring the levy to 6.96%. That is a tremendous effort by staff and it followed the prompting of the council who heard legitimate questions and concerns by residents and business owners about the cost of services and the rate of increases in the recent years. Those concerns were ultimately balanced with the needs of the city to continue to provide the essential and exceptional services that residents have come to expect. After some discussion, the council voted to adopt the 6.9% levy increase and the budget for next year, which equates to an increase of $10.37 per month for the median value home in Bloomington. Thank you to everyone who's been part of this important process. If you want to learn more, visit our Bloomington budget web page. Also, on Monday, there was some discussion about the Housing and Redevelopment Authorities budget. There has been talk about this recently and I wanted to provide some background on what the HRA does. The HRA in and for the city of Bloomington works to create a stable and welcoming community by supporting safe and dignified housing choices. The HA has programs that support Bloomington residents at many different points in their housing journey from people experiencing homelessness to those who already own a home. This includes programs like home repair loans, energy efficiency assessments, home buyer education, and housing developments that offer affordable options. Funding for the HRA comes from a variety of sources, including a local levy, rental income, loan repayments, and grants that come from the federal, state, local, and regional levels. About 65% of the HA's budget comes from federal grants, specifically the housing choice voucher program and community development block grants. About 24% comes from local property taxes. This year, that equates to just under $3 million. Housing is a critical community need, and stable housing benefits everyone. When people have safe and secure homes, families are stronger, neighborhoods are healthier, and we are all one step closer to Bloomington's mission of cultivating an enduring and remarkable community where people want to be. You can find out more about what the HR does on the HR website. And finally today, each year the city develops a legislative platform to guide our advocacy efforts at the state and federal levels and to ultimately advance the city's strategic plan, Bloomington tomorrow. together. On Monday night, the city council heard a staff presentation which laid out the 2026 legislative priorities. The most notable items are state capital budget requests for the north central sanitary sewer project and old Shakapei road corridor improvements. There's also a request for an on-sale liquor license for Dwan Golf Course. The priorities also include a number of other topics which are organized into nine key categories. broadband, data and financial, economic development, energy and environment, environmental health, housing, public health, public safety, and transportation and infrastructure. The platform reflects Bloomington's commitment to equity, sustainability, economic prosperity, and community well-being, and it serves as a roadmap for working with state and federal partners in the year ahead. Council will vote to adopt the platform at next week's council meeting and more info will be posted to the city's website shortly thereafter. That will do it for this week's council minute. Thank you so much for watching. Until next time, stay safe, Bloomington.